“Few books are beautifully written, fewer still are important; this novel is both.”--The Washington Post

Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously-and at great risk-documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

Praise for BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY:

“A superlative first novel. A hefty emotional punch.”--The New York Times Book Review

“A brilliant story of love and survival.”--Laurie Halse Anderson, bestselling author of Speak and Wintergirls

* “Beautifully written and deeply felt…an important book that deserves the widest possible readership.”--Booklist, Starred Review

A New York Times BestsellerAn International BestsellerA New York Times Notable Book of 2011A Wall Street Journal Best Children’s Book of 2011A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2011The iTunes 2011 Rewind Best Teen NovelThe #1 Book on the Spring 2011 IndieNext ListA School Library Journal Best Book of 2011A Booklist Best Book of 2011A Kirkus Best Book of 20112012 IRA Children’s and Young Adults Book Award for Young Adult Fiction2012 Indies Choice Young Adult Book of the YearA Carnegie Medal FinalistA William C. Morris Finalist

Audible book Switch back and forth between reading the Kindle book and listening to the Audible book with Whispersync for Voice. Add the Audible book for a reduced price of $12.99 when you buy the Kindle book.

"Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress"
Is the world really falling apart? Is the ideal of progress obsolete? Cognitive scientist and public intellectual Steven Pinker urges us to step back from the gory headlines and prophecies of doom, and instead, follow the data: In seventy-five jaw-dropping graphs, Pinker shows that life, health, prosperity, safety, peace, knowledge, and happiness are on the rise. Learn more

Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Editorial Reviews

*Starred Review* Sepetys' first novel offers a harrowing and horrifying account of the forcible relocation of countless Lithuanians in the wake of the Russian invasion of their country in 1939. In the case of 16-year-old Lina, her mother, and her younger brother, this means deportation to a forced-labor camp in Siberia, where conditions are all too painfully similar to those of Nazi concentration camps. Lina's great hope is that somehow her father, who has already been arrested by the Soviet secret police, might find and rescue them. A gifted artist, she begins secretly creating pictures that can--she hopes--be surreptitiously sent to him in his own prison camp. Whether or not this will be possible, it is her art that will be her salvation, helping her to retain her identity, her dignity, and her increasingly tenuous hold on hope for the future. Many others are not so fortunate. Sepetys, the daughter of a Lithuanian refugee, estimates that the Baltic States lost more than one-third of their populations during the Russian genocide. Though many continue to deny this happened, Sepetys' beautifully written and deeply felt novel proves the reality is otherwise. Hers is an important book that deserves the widest possible readership. Grades 7-12. --Michael Cart

Top customer reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

First, I should say that I did NOT want to read this book. I was adamantly against reading it because I thought it would be soooo boring. This genre is typically not my thing, but surprisingly, it just might be the best book I’ve ever read. It was almost perfect in every way. It has some history, with a bit of romance thrown in amongst suspense, fear, sadness and anger. I loved the strong characters and Lina’s descriptions and names of the people who surrounded her. It makes you think - while we were caught up in the peril of the Jewish people during WWII, Stalin’s terror was in full swing, but we don’t really learn about it all that much. I’ve heard of how horrible Stalin was and that he most certainly actually killed more people than Hitler via genocide, but to actually read about some of the events that took place makes me sick to my stomach. Did we (USA) know about Stalin, but ignore the rumors because we were busy with our own war and Russia was a temporary ally? I’d like to think not, but this book really makes you wonder. How do our “leaders” decide which peoples are actually worth helping in the world? On a much brighter note; Lina’s talk of art and artists was inspiring and makes me want to learn to draw and learn more about art in general. The images described throughout the book are amazing. The only way I think the book could have been better is if we could actually have had a visual of Lina’s drawings. In my mind they are breathtakingly weird. The ending could’ve also been a bit more developed…it paled in comparison to the rest of the book. The bottom line (after I’ve written a book of my own here) is - I LOVED THIS BOOK!

Hitler tends to get all the press, but unfortunately there is no shortage of evil in the world. Stalin killed millions of his own people and as is documented in this book, many more were sent to the gulags for “punishment.” Decades separate us from Stalin’s crimes, but we are also separated from the atrocities that Sepetys documents by blithe comments to the effect that “Communism is just an alternative political system.” Stories like Lina’s show us how evil the communist ideology truly is. It’s easy to forget this evil in our modern, comfortable lives. It’s easy to tell ourselves that this kind of thing doesn’t happen anymore and it’s not possible in this day and age. It’s easy to tell ourselves that we need the government to do more for us and hand over pieces of our lives and our freedoms, so that we will be “safe.” But all power corrupts absolutely (thanks Orwell – who knew too well the awfulness of communism) and Sepetys shows us the damage that wreaks.

This is the second book I have read by Sepetys. This book was very powerful. Sepetys was relentless in her portrayal of the horror and brutality that Lina and her family endured as Polish political prisoners under communism. Reading this book was a good reminder of how good are lives are. The current political climate is just awful, but it’s not the end of days we think it is. It is easy to get wrapped up in our present and think this is the worst it has ever been. Between Shades of Gray is an excellent reminder that things can be much worse and that they were in recent memory. It is also a reminder that we should be grateful for our many blessings and to stand vigilant against evil. I recommend this book as a reality check against all our complaining about our first world problems. It certainly gave my twelve-year-old daughter food for thought.

This is a story about sacrifice, perseverance, survival, courage and hope.

During World War II, many Lithuanians lost their precious families and were forced to abandon their beloved homes. Their stories were told as they were seen, experienced and recorded by a fifteen year old Lithuanian girl, Lina. Lina's youth and homeland were stolen from her by Stalin's reign of terror.

Along with countless other Lithuanians, Lina and her family were abruptly removed from their beautiful and peaceful homes and sent on a harrowing and dehumanizing trip with the final destination being a Siberian prison camp. This book beautifully told the stories of some of the survivors and victims.

Lina, Jonas and Andrius cared for each other, protected one another and managed to scrape up little joys and small reasons to smile and hope. These actions and traits allowed them to persevere and survive.

The characters, both main and supportive, were multi dimensional and well developed.

Between Shades Of Gray is another story which needed to be told, experienced and remembered.

Why, oh why, does one nation or group of people think they are superior to another? This is the question I asked myself after reading this heart-wrenching story. Between Shades of Gray brings to light yet another, and until now unknown (to me at least), page of horrifying history from world war two.And we never learn or change. Outrageous crimes against humanity run rife to this day. Humans really are nothing more than intelligent animals. Animals who use their so-called intelligence for one simple egoistical purpose: to find better and quicker ways to humiliate, punish or kill those who belong to the wrong ethnic group, religion, or political system.I can't say I enjoyed Between Shades of Gray, not because it was poorly written or any such thing, but because it made me feel ashamed I am part of the human race.